Welcome to another video from ExplainingComputers.com.
This time we re visiting the 2019 TCT Show in Birmingham in the United Kingdom.
TCT stands for time compression technologies, and the TCT Show is the place to see the
latest and the greatest in 3D printing.
So, let s go and take, a closer look.
TCT is a very large tradeshow, and hence I cannot hope to include everything on display
in this video.
So, I what I m going to do is to focus on some key stands, and innovations, that really
caught my attention.
For example, over on the Stratasys stand
I found these and this, which are first 3D printed parts to
be put into service in trains on the UK s railways.
These were produced using a Stratasys 3D printer by Angel Trains and DB ESG.
And in case you re wondering this is an arm rest, and looks like this on an actual train.
Meanwhile, these are grab handles, and are located on a trains on the outer edges of seats
The ability to 3D print spare parts like these reduces the need to place orders for large
production runs, or to hold a large inventory of legacy components.
Instead, spares can be printed on demand as required, which all helps to keep costs down.
In a similar fashion, on the other side of the Stratasys stand, we find this mock-up
of a business class seat in an aircraft cabin, which is here to demonstrate how 3D printers
are increasingly being used to produce lightweight ducting and other interior aircraft parts.
For such applications, Stratasys has developed its aerospace-grade ULTEM 9085 filament, which
allows flight-ready parts to be 3D printed that meet the necessary flame, smoke and toxicity
material requirements.
Just one of the 3D printers capable of making industrial-grade parts is the new Stratasys
F120, which is more reliable, accurate and durable than typical desktop hardware.
And as we can see, the F120 also produces very nice prints.
And talking of nice prints, Stratasys are also displaying a range of printouts from
their resin-based, material jetting or PolyJet 3D printers.
This, for example, is a one half of 3D printed mold used to make bottles.
Some PolyJet hardware is also capable of making really high quality, full-colour, multi-material
3D prints, such as this prototype of a trainer, or this superb medical model.
This particular piece was printed on a Stratasys J750, one of which is on working away on the
Laserlines stand.
Again a full-colour medical model printout is on display.
And due to its rubber-like outer material, it feels very strange indeed.
Stratasys are not the only company to offer full-colour 3D output.
For example, running live on the Matsuura stand, we find an HP 580 Multi-Jet Fusion
3D printer that builds objects using a powder-based technology.
The detail and surface quality are very good, if not quite up to the standard of the more
expensive resin-based colour printing available from a Stratasys J750.
Over at XYZ Printing, the DaVinci Colour Mini also creates full colour 3D prints.
This is a material extrusion printer, and mixes coloured inks with a special colour-absorbing
PLA filament.
This significantly lowers the cost of colour 3D printing, with the price of the printer
down to about $1,600.
Taking yet another approach, on the Duet3D stand is this amazing, one-off printer built
by Ian Peg, aka Deckingman on YouTube.
This amazing printer is fed with five different color filaments, which are mixed in its extruder
to create multi-colour prints.
This really is a most extraordinary piece of engineering, and I very much enjoyed discussing
its construction and operation with its inventor.
A 3D printing company I ve followed closely for many years is Ultimaker.
Back in 2012, I saw an early Ultimaker, which even then had great print quality.
Fast forward to today, and at the TCT Show the company have launched their
Ultimaker S5 Pro Bundle.
This is based on their existing S5 3D printer from May 2018.
But rather than keeping the filament mounted on the back, several spools are now housed
in a sealed material station on which the S5 stands.
There's then an Air Manager placed on the top to fully enclose the build space.
Ultimaker claim that the S5 Pro Bundle brings industrial production power to the desktop,
with automatic material handling, efficient air filtering, and filament humidity control.
Another company I ve been interested in since its early days is Formlabs.
Back at 2012, I filmed their first 3D printer, the Form 1, which was a game changer because
it loweredthe cost of stereolithographic, resin-based printing to a few thousand dollars
and brought it to the desktop.
In April 2019, FormLabs launched their new Form 3 and Form 3L, which as we can see here
have their very reflecting casings!
These new printers are based on low force stereolithography, which improves print quality,
with support structures that are easier to remove.
Here we can see the difference between a printout from an older Form 2 printer on the left,
and a new Form 3 printout of the same object in the same material on the right.
With an extensive range of resins available, the FormLabs printers can produce a wide variety
of output, from prototypes to final parts.
In June 2019, New Balance even released a limited edition of this running shoe, its
990 Sport, which has the back of the sole 3D printed on a Formlabs 3D printer.
The design of this part of the shoe is known as TripleCell, and could not be manufactured
using traditional production methods.
To make the part possible, Formlabs developed a new photopolymer material called Rebound Resin.
Several other manufacturers are showcasing stereolithographic 3D printers that use light
to solidify a photocurable resin.
Not least 3D Systems, the inventors of the technology, are exhibiting some modular cells
from their Figure 4 3D printing platform, which is intended for the large-scale production
of 3D printed parts.
Meanwhile, on the Photocentric stand, their Liquid Crystal Magna 3D printer is getting
its first outing at a UK tradeshow.
Photocentric s 3D printers use LCD screens to image object layers, with the Liquid Crystal
Magna based on a 23.8 inch, 3840 by 2160 panel.
To demonstrate the capabilities of their technology, Photocentric have arrived at TCT with a full-size
prototype of a motorbike that they have 3D printed entirely in resin.
Not to be outdone, just opposite EnvisionTEC have brought a racing car with them, which
features parts produced with its stereolithographic 3D printers.
Also on display are their floor-standing Vector 3SP printer, along with the smaller
Envision One.
EnvisionTEC have a reputation for making hardware that is used to fabricate highly intricate
small parts, like these figures, and also dental and other medical devices.
However, this year at TCT they are focusing more on the broader industrial application
of their technology, including the 3D printout of jigs and larger components.
This year there are relatively few consumer-focused 3D printers at TCT.
Educational favourites MakerBot are present, although the printers they are showcasing
are their METHOD models, which launched in December 2018 to bridge the gap between industrial
3D printer accuracy, and desktop 3D printer accessibility . Without doubt, the METHODS
certainly produce great prints.
But with the price starting at $6,500 dollars, they are certainly not for most makers.
A more consumer-orientated device is the UK manufactured Threedy, which costs 895 pounds in kit
form, or 1,795 pounds assembled.
Alternatively, over on the Prusa Research stand, an open-source Prusa i3 can be purchased
for $749 as a kit, or fully assembled for $1,000.
The i3 printer we are looking at here had been fitted with a multi-material upgrade, which
allows it to be connected to up to five rolls of filament, from which it selects as required
in order to produce multi-filament prints.
The TCT Show awards excellence and innovation, and this year s non-polymer hardware award
went to Anisoprint for their composite fibre coextrusion or CFC technology.
This features a print head with two extruders, one of which is fed with a single thermoplastic,
while the second is fed both a thermoplastic and a strand of 0.35mm carbon fibre composite.
This allows Anisoprint Composer 3D printers to fabricate plastic objects that are selectively
reinforced with carbon fibre, so allowing structural parts to be made that can be stronger
than some metal components.
Ansioprint sell two sizes of their Composer 3D printer -- a smaller A4 and a larger A3
model.
The prints produced appear to be very strong indeed, and it's noticeable how much heavier
the same parts are when produced with a dense carbon fiber reinforcement.
In addition to thermoplastics and resins, some companies are exhibiting metal 3D prints,
including 3D Systems, EOS with this rather beautiful bracket, and TRUMPF with this jawbone,
and this superb component additively manufacturer in copper.
Over on the SLM Solutions stand, there's also this very impressive engine cylinder head,
which took over six days to print.
SLM Solutions also drew my attention to this part, which is the first 3D printed metal
component used in a production automobile.
Specifically, this is the active heat shield panel fitted in all Bugatti Chiron sports cars.
The part is 3D printed in aluminium on SLM Solutions hardware, and features integrated
water cooling channels, which would be impossible to incorporate if it were manufactured using
conventional methods.
Over at Digital Metal, a DM P2500 3D printer has produced some highly detailed but very
small stainless steel prints.
These Klein bottle openers, for example, are only a few centimetres tall, while this vehicle
is about 40mm long, and these castles with interior staircases range from just over 10mm
to just under 5mm tall.
Digital Metal also gave me this tiny 3D printed whistle, which as you can see is about the
length of a micro SD card.
At every TCT Show there is one product that really grabs my attention.
And in 2019, it s on the Zotrax stand.
Over the past few years, Zortrax have developed a reputation for manufacturing very solid
and reliable material extrusion 3D printers, and at TCT they're introducing their new Endureal model.
They ve also got several of their Inkspire resin-based 3D printers on display.
But it's not any of these printers that I consider to be TCT's Best in Show.
Rather, what I think is the most outstanding product is the Zortrax Apoller.
And what this does is to turn a material extrusion print that looks like this . . .
. . . into one that looks like this.
Technically, the Apoller is a smart vapour smoothing or device that post-processes ABS,
HIPS or ASA-based prints so that they no longer have a stepped surface with visible layers.
Objects are placed into the Apoller, selections are made on its touchscreen, and its chamber
is heated and filled with acetone or another solvent vapour with precise temperature and
pressure control.
After a few hours, parts can be removed, and have a surface quality comparable to injection
molding.
The potential to use the Apoller to expand the range of application of material extrusion
3D printing is enormous.
For the first time, it makes it possible to cheaply and safely 3D print
plastic objects with a consumer-acceptable surface quality, and which can be properly cleaned.
Personally, I think that the statue on the right has the look and feel of bone china or
porcelain.
And certainly, many people would be happy to have objects of this quality in their homes
3D printing continues to be a very exciting, vibrant and forward-looking industry, and
this has very much been in evidence here at the TCT Show.
But now that's it for another video, if you've enjoyed what you've seen here please press
that like button, if you haven't subscribed, please subscribe, and I hope to talk to you again,
very soon.